Category: Health

Promotion for safe sex by the Connecticut Department of Health Services / Wellcome Collection, Creative Commons Condoms have been with us for thousands of years, but the original condoms probably weren’t all that good for safe sex. Though tortoiseshell, animal intestine and linen have all been used to make them, it was Charles Goodyear’s discovery[…]

Charming family scenes in Victorian adverts for children’s medicines were in stark contrast to some of the dangerous ingredients that the products contained. Alcohol and opiates were among the substances helping to ‘soothe’ the nation’s children. By Briony Hudson / 10.12.2017 Pharmacy Historian, Curator, Lecturer British Society for the History of Pharmacy When young Betsy[…]

In Ancient Greek texts, the king Lycaon is punished for misdeeds by being turned into a wolf. / Wikimedia Commons Tapping into ancient knowledge can help us feel connected to our ancestors – but that doesn’t mean we should take their advice. By Adam Parker / 10.31.2018 PhD Candidate in Classical Studies The Open University Lifestyle company Goop –[…]

Left: Sumerian medical clay tablet – Medical clay tablet from Nippur dated to about 2200 BC is considered the oldest known Sumerian medical book. 2200 BC. Source: Samuel N. Kramer, History begins at Sumer; Right: Treatment of a patient. Medicine in the ancient Near East prior to 1000 BCE was a well-developed profession by the[…]

The historical analyses of Thomas McKeown regarding global population growth from 1700 to the present stirred controversy, and its influence remains. ‘ By Dr. James Colgrove Professor of Sociomedical Sciences Columbia University Abstract The historical analyses of Thomas McKeown attributed the modern rise in the world population from the 1700s to the present to broad[…]

In this seal, a seated vegetation goddess is greeted by three other deities. / Walters Art Museum, Wikimedia Commons In ancient Mesopotamia the gods infused every aspect of daily life and this, of course, extended to health care. By Dr. Joshua J. Mark / 05.21.2014 Professor of Philosophy Marist College Intrroduction An Arab folio on which is[…]

With the rapid pace of vaccine development in recent decades, the historic origins of immunization are often forgotten. By Dr Stefan Riedel, M.D. PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology Johns Hopkins University Introduction Figure 1: Edward Jenner (1749–1823). Photo courtesy of the National Library of Medicine In science credit goes to the man who convinces the[…]

In May 1796, Edward Jenner was asked to inoculate an eight-year-old pauper child named James Phipps. By Dr. Arthur W. Boylston Pathologist In 1796, seventy-five years after Lady Mary Wortley Montague and Charles Maitland introduced inoculation into England (Huth 2005; Boylston 2012), Edward Jenner performed an experiment that would eventually lead to the eradication of smallpox[…]

Hippocrates, the “father of medicine” / Public Domain By the 5th century BCE, there were attempts to identify the material causes for illnesses rather than spiritual ones. By Mark Cartwright / 04.11.2018 Historian Introduction In ancient Greek medicine illness was initally regarded as a divine punishment and healing as, quite literally, a gift from the gods. However, by[…]

Dated to the New Kingdom (c. 1570 – c. 1069 BCE), and specifically to c. 1200 BCE, the text is written in demotic script and is the oldest treatise on anorectal disease (affecting the anus and rectum) in history. / Photo by Ibolya Horvath, British Museum, Creative Commons The history of medicine is a long and distinguished one, as[…]

The Susruta-Samhita or Sahottara-Tantra (A Treatise on Ayurvedic Medicine) / Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Wikimedia Commons Specialization in certain diseases or practices was prevalent and the physicians enjoyed a high status and respect in the society. By Dr. B. Rama Rao Abstract It appears that from medieval period onwards the subjects having practical[…]

MIT neuroscientists have found evidence that the brain’s ability to control what it’s thinking about relies on low-frequency brain waves known as beta rhythms. Brain rhythms act as a gate for information entering and leaving the mind. By Anne Trafton / 01.26.2018 MIT neuroscientists have found evidence that the brain’s ability to control what it’s[…]

The theory that education protects against Alzheimer’s disease has been given further weight by new research from the University of Cambridge, funded by the European Union. The study is published today in The BMJ. By Cambridge University / 12.07.2017 Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia. Its chief hallmark is the build of ‘plaques’ and[…]

Image by Pablo Blasberg As daylight saving time looms, researcher sheds light on health effects of not getting enough rest By Alvin Powell / 03.06.2018 This weekend’s change to daylight saving time means an extra hour of light in the evening. The shift is a milestone on the way to barbecues and beach trips, but[…]

As many as 70 million Americans may not be getting enough sleep. Men get fewer hours of sleep than women. Akos Nagy/Shutterstock.com By Dr. Michael S. Jaffee / 03.07.2018 Vice Chair, Department of Neurology University of Florida As we prepare to “spring forward” for daylight saving time on March 11, many of us dread the loss[…]

Nanobots that patrol our bodies, killer immune cells hunting and destroying cancer cells, biological scissors that cut out defective genes: these are just some of technologies that Cambridge researchers are developing which are set to revolutionise medicine in the future. 10.12.2017 In a new film to coincide with the recent launch of the Cambridge Academy of[…]

Teeth fossils with evidence of dental lesions from Australopithecus africanus. Ian Towle, Author provided Prehistoric humans and their predecessors may have had a very different diet but their teeth suffered in similar ways to ours. By Dr. Ian Towle / 03.01.2018 Sessional Lecturer in Anthropology Liverpool John Moores University Dental erosion is one of the most common tooth problems in the world today. Fizzy[…]

Bloodletting was treatment for infection in the past. Wellcome Library, London, CC BY While some ancient therapies proved effective enough that they are still used in some form today, on the whole they just aren’t as good as modern antimicrobials at treating infections. By Dr. Cristie Columbus / 01.29.2016 Associate Dean Campus – Dallas Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine Texas A&M University The development of antibiotics and[…]

Just five more minutes … can a coffee before a nap really help you pay back your sleep debt? from www.shutterstock.com Can drinking a cup of coffee before taking a short nap really give you the energy you need to see you through the day? By Dr. Chin Moi Chow / 04.02.2017 Associate Professor of Sleep and Wellbeing University of Sydney Caffeine and napping have something[…]

Many reasons that weren’t explored may account for the findings that women who drank coffee decreased their risk of dementia. Tim Wright/Unsplash, CC BY A study was reported to show caffeine protects older women from dementia. But looking closer at the research, we can’t truly claim coffee was the reason some of the women had a lower risk of dementia. By Dr.[…]

Nobuhiro Asada/Shutterstock.com A new analysis shows that coffee is associated with a host of positive health effects. By Dr. Robin Poole / 11.22.2017 Specialist Registrar in Public Health University of Southampton Drinking moderate amounts of coffee – about three or four cups a day – is more likely to benefit our health than harm it, our latest research shows. This is important to know[…]

Coffee’s usefulness doesn’t have to end here. Yanadhorn/Shutterstock.com Plenty of cafes these days will let you take home some used coffee grounds, to put on your garden. It’s a versatile material with loads of potential uses – as long as you treat it properly first. By Dr. Tien Huynh / 01.31.2018 Senior Lecturer in the School of Sciences RMIT University Did you[…]

What will it take to finish polio off in the last three countries where it persists? AP Photo/B.K. Bangash The virus’ days look numbered – but health workers have their work cut out for them to eradicate the devastating disease once and for all. By Dr. Christine Crudo Blackburn and Dr. Morton Wendelbo / 03.23.2018[…]

A prisoner looks out a window on March 26, 2015, from Zhdanivskaya prison in Ukraine, were TB is rampant. AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov World TB Day will be observed March 24, with the good news that deaths from tuberculosis are declining. But a trend toward confining those with TB threatens to stall advances. By Eric Friedman,[…]

Nurse B.K. Morris gives a flu shot to Winifred Quinn during a press event on the flu vaccine, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015, at the National Press Club in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) By Dr. Nicole Iovine, M.D., PhD / 03.06.2018 Associate Professor, Infectious Diseases University of Florida Researchers believe that over 50 million people worldwide died in[…]